Inferno Slayer
by Steven Quartz rebellion
Summary: THE WITCH HUNTS AREN'T OVER. The Lumen Sages, a clan of light wielding mystics thought to be long dead has returned. Serah Luxerion the last surviving Lumen Sage awakens with no memories of her past in the present day. Discovering that Witches survived the Witch Hunts Serah seeks to end the 500 year war. Can Serah defeat the witches and reclaim her memories? Or will she fail?
1. Prologue

p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"War had broken out. I could hardly believe it when the Lumen Kings and Elders had given the verdict. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The steep and growing hatred between the Umbra and Lumen had fully formed, and now it was the time for war. Are goal? To wipe the Umbra Witch Clan off the face of the earth and retrieve the Dark Witches treasured Left Eye. Together the Eyes of the World can resurrect the Creator Jubileus and a new world will be formed./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"That was the decree by which we Lumen Sages were bound. But often I would think to myself. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Is this was truly worth it? We, the protectors of the Eyes of the World now seek to destroy each other over the very treasures we swore to protect. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"But I had no say in the matter. At least not of yet. For now it was a time of battle. And so there I stood. On the front lines, with nothing but my guns and the light of heaven to guide me./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"*****/span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The fires of war raged around me. I ran without end through the streets of Vigrid, the bodies of Sage's and Witches littered the streets. I had no idea that this was what War truly looked like. When I went out with my first battalion and I saw the damage I wanted to cry at how many we had lost. But now I knew that I had to press on, or I would just be another body added to the dead./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"A small gust of wind blew through the air and billowed around my divine robes, the cool wind was a slight reprieve from all that's been going on. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I would have enjoyed the breeze longer had it not been for the interrupting sounds of heels clacking against stones. My eyes widened as three Umbra Witches sprang forward, hellhounds at their sides. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Shit! /spanspan style="font-size: 16pt;"I thought internally./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""There! A Lumen!" One Witch cried out as she pointed at me. So much for subtly I guess. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""Tear her to shreds!" Another commanded the hellhounds viciously, no doubt craving to see my blood awash on the ancient hollow stones./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The demonic dogs charged forward as I held my ground. As the first hellhound leaped in the air towards me ready to pounce I was able to get a good look at it. It's skin a dark purple almost black, red eyes glossed over with bloodlust, and sharp serrated teeth looking to sink into my flesh. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I held no fear as I stared into it's eyes, it didn't scare me. I even had the bold audacity to smile at it. "Maybe next time Fido" I taunted./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"In a flash of light I had summoned my weapon of choice from my dimensional pocket. A long white musket rifle with golden accents. In the blink of an eye I aimed the gun at the hellhounds open jaws and pulled the trigger./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The bullet flew into it's mouth and shattered it's skull before combusting, the hellhound reduced to ash in mere moments. The three Umbra Witches were taken aback by my actions. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Not so tough as you thought now are you? /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"With the Witches temporarily shocked that gave me time to summon another musket rifle into my awaiting hands. And now my set of guns were complete, /spanspan style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Seraphs Judgement /spanspan style="font-size: 16pt;"as I had named them with the script /spanspan style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Credens Justitiam /spanspan style="font-size: 16pt;"written along the barrel in Latin underneath the guns name written in gold./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""I am not without mercy, surrender now and I shall spare your lives." /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I had hoped they would have taken the offer, but they seemed to have detested the thought. The Umbra Witches summoned their guns as more hellhounds arrived from Inferno. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""We shall never surrender! As long as there is light, the shadow remains cast!"/span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I inwardly sighed as I brought up my guns. It would seem I had no choice to fight. As the hellhounds cornered me from all sides they all charged thinking of me as nothing more than fair game. With grace and fury I twirled around to meet the demonic dogs of hell, firing bullets from both of my guns in different directions, like repetition./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Twirl. Fire. Twirl. Fire. Fire. Twirl./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Shell casings fell to the floor in bulk at the unnatural rate I fired my muskets, and in a matter of seconds the hellhounds were nothing more but ash floating in the wind. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I thought I would have time to try and broker peace with the Umbra but my train of thought was interrupted by the familiar 'shing' of an unsheathed dagger. Spinning on my heels I dodged the thrown dagger at the very last moment, magic and adrenaline mixed together as one of the Lumen's sacred magic techniques was triggered./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Light Speed./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"An ability exhibiting temporal control that allowed us Sage's to completely stop time, as opposed to the Umbra Witches Witch Time that only slows it down. As Light Speed activated the world came to a stop, the color from reality seemed to drain away to simple black and white, a small effect of Light Speed./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Having no choice I aimed my guns at two of the three Witches firing multiple bullets at different parts of their bodies. This was one of the advantages and drawbacks of being a Sage or a Witch. Both of our kinds are physically enhanced in both strength, speed, agility, and pain tolerance. One bullet wasn't going to take them out, hence why I shot multiple./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"As time began to resume and color slowly returned to the world the bullets I fired began to move towards the Witches before time fully snapped back into place, and the sound of tortured screams could be heard as the bullets collided with their bodies and killed them instantly./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"I didn't want to kill them of course. But this was war, and if I have to choose between them or me? I choose me every time./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The last standing Witch looked at me horrified, a mix of anger and sadness was written visibly on her face. She looked at me before looking to her fallen sister Witches. "You killed them...I'll murder YOU!" She roared as she fired a flurry of bullets blindly./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Taping into my magic I threw up up a protective barrier of golden energy, the bullets bouncing off harmlessly. The Witch stopped her assault as she ran forward throwing her hand back and punching the air. My eyes widened with surprise and I had no time to dodge as a large demonic fist collided with my gut and knocked me off my feet and into the side of a building./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"Pain flared up and lanced throughout all of my body, a small trickle of blood flowing from the side of my mouth. "I will end you...and avenge my fallen sisters! I will make sure you burn in Inferno you wretched Sage!" /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"As the Umbra Witch slowly walked towards me I managed to get to my feet once more, clutching my hand to my chest I used my magic to begin to heal me, a soft warm light spreading from my hands. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The sound of a cocked gun got my attention as I looked to see the Umbra Witch with her eyes filled with tears staring at me, her face full of anguish. "Tell me", I began to say./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""If you kill me right here right now, does it really change anything. I'm not the only Sage you know. More Sage's and Witches will kill each other and the carnage will continue. So tell me, are you truly trying to end this war, or are you just trying to prolong the inevitable?"/span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"My words seemed to have gotten to the Witch as she faulted in her step. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 16pt;"Big mistake./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"As fast as lightning I roundhouse kicked the gun out of her hand, causing her to trip and start stumbling backwards./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"The last thing the Umbra Witch saw was me, my eyes no doubt filled to the brim with remorse. And of course she saw the end of the barrel of my gun. /span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;""Forgive me", I whispered./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-size: 16pt;"And then I squeezed the trigger./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: 16pt;"A/N: I thought I'd do something different with a Bayonetta fanfic as I'm always writing about an OC Umbra Witch I thought I'd make a Lumen Sage OC to shake things up. Hence why the Lumen Sage Serah was born/span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia;"span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: 16pt;"This is a little outside my comfort zone because I'm always writing about the Umbra and we don't know that much about the Lumen but I hope you like it./span/p  
p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; min-height: 18.2px;" /p 


	2. Chapter 1

I let out a relaxed sigh as I finished off the rest of my strawberry banana smoothie. Today had been a great day so far. I managed to whip myself up some breakfast that thankfully wasn't burnt and I had just received an email that my favorite clothing store is having a sale.

Naturally I had to put everything on pause and rush over immediately.

As the sound of my heels clacked on the sidewalk my mind briefly went over everything that happened to me so far as last night I had a terrible nightmare, or rather a memory. It was of the war, and of the Umbra Witches I had killed.

It was actually one of the few memories I have of my past life. It had been a mystery to me as to how I survived the war and the Witch Hunts. From what I've managed to recover of the two Clans lost past all of the Sage's have been vanquished from the earth, all of my brother and sisters at arms joining the Creator in Paradiso.

All I can recall is that my name is Serah, and that I am the last surviving member of the Lumen Sage clan, a once powerful European clan of sorcerers that made pacts with angels in exchange for their holy powers. The two clans originally sought peace, and protected the Eyes of the World, two ancient powers that was entrusted to each Clan. But a war over the Eyes broke out. Witch and Sage were pitted against each other. Light vs Dark.

Naturally you would think that with the power of God and the angels on our side we would win, but we didn't. The Umbra Witches launched their secret assaults, and with their dark powers shrouded in mystery we had no idea what to prepare for. As such the war had ended in the Umbra Witches favor, and all the Lumen Sages were wiped out.

Fearing the Umbra's dark abilities humans launched the Witch Hunts, rounding up the battle weary witches with little resistance, and subjugating those who wish to continue the struggle. And soon the Umbra Witches, dwellers of the darkness were extinguished from the earth.

And from the ancient texts I read the Sage's were also supposed to be extinct. Yet here I was. Somehow I managed to survive. When I awoke from my dreamless slumber, I was in a sort of strange crystal, my body was numb, my cream and gold colored divine robes were in tatters and stained with dry blood.

I barely felt my magic surface that day, and I had almost died from a demon attack had it not been for a wandering demon hunter. He was very wild and charismatic I'll give him that much. But what made him really interesting was his appearance. Blood red trench coat and snow white hair. I hadn't known it then but he had the aura of a demon about him. I believe he said his name was _Tony Redgrave._

He even gave me a card to contact him and his devil hunting shop if I ever needed assistance. I believe his card was somewhere in my apartment, the name _Devil May Cry_ sprawled in cursive writing with a number. I of course never followed Tony back up on his offer.

I was far to busy researching the Lumen Sage's and Umbra Witches and figuring out how to regain my lost powers. And that was the weirdest thing. I remember virtually nothing yet all the training and stuff still seems fresh in my brain as if on instinct. But I guess that's really a bonus when it comes to having to fight off Infernal demons that want to drag your soul down to Hell.

Finally reaching my favorite clothing store _Valley of God,_ I pushed open the doors to see other girls and women rushing past each other desperate to get all the hottest items on sale.

As a gruesome war overtook the women at Valley of God I merely sauntered past all of them, narrowly dodging a spiked heel shoe being tossed that managed to smack/stab another woman square in the face.

As I got up to the cash register I was greeted by the anxious but kind face of Cindy, the supervisor of the store. "Serah, there you are. Came in for the big sale?"

I couldn't help but smile how she still managed to keep calm on days like this, she wasn't a bad person to be around. But with demons constantly trying to kill you you tend to not wanna make friends with humans.

"Of course I did, do you have the collection of pre-saved treats you promised?" I asked in a hushed tone.

She nodded curtly.

"Follow me to the dressing room and you can try on your stuff I want to see what you look like." Swiftly following behind Cindy we navigated through the turmoil and into the dressing room. Going in one of them towards the back Cindy opened the door to reveal multiple shirts and dresses on a rack with a whole lot of shoes.

I couldn't help but stare at them all in wonder.

"And now to try them on" I murmured as I quickly got to work.

The first few outfits were horrible, too much black, and too much leather. It was never my style. But the dresses and other coats and shoes were. As I tried on multiple outfits I finally had my pick and paid for them all.

Thank Jubileus for debit cards. Another fun fact is that all of the money I have is from rogue demon contracts. In other words I'm a devil hunter in my spare time, hence why I can afford such a high ranking clothing establishment such as Valley of God. Whenever I went devil hunting I normally go under my alias as to protect my identity.

Alice has to be one of my favorite alias's to use. Named after my favorite character from Resident Evil it's nice to pay homage to such an iconic action movie character in such a way.

But I digress.

As my stuff was being rung up for me at the register I saw Cindy's eyes wander behind me for the fifth time. "Is everything okay?" I asked calmly. Cindy seemed hesitant at first as she was sweating bullets.

She leaned in closer, acting like she needed me to sign something and she whispered, "I don't mean to alarm you, but that girl has been staring at you since you walked in."

I looked at Cindy and raised my eyebrow. Please, humans were the least of my worries. Turning around I looked to see what had to be the most out of place girl I've ever seen. Her skin was a deadly pale, making her look like a China doll. Her eyes were an unnatural deep crimson. She had long raven hair in two long braided ponytails that seemed to reach a little past her waist, the braids held together by two small red ribbons.

She wore a black ripped up shirt that barely covered her midriff paired up with a black leather jacket and some dark pants combined with black high heels. Her eyes were cold and filled with malice, her eyes never once leaving mine's once they connected.

I could tell right from the start something was off about her. Something dark and foul. As if it was something old, gnarled, and rotten. The woman looked at me...and then smiled.

It wasn't the kind friendly smile you would give your friend or neighbor, but something rather cocky and almost triumphant.

Before I had a chance to do anything else a powerful tremor shook the store. I of course didn't need to hold onto anything whilst everyone else scrambled for cover. The only people that were unmoving through the crisis was me, and the mysterious woman with the braids. I wanted to question just who she was so bad, but I never got the chance as the sound of more screams pierced the air.

Turning to look out the windows were a whole crowd of humans running from what appeared to be Hideous, low ranking demons that were on the same level as the Third Sphere angels Affinity.

I opened my palms, ready to summon Seraphs Judgement to my hands before the mysterious woman attacked. Swiftly summoning a silver handgun into her hand she quickly aimed and fired.

Instantly my instincts took in and I activated Light Speed.

Quickly moving the bullets out the way with a mere flick of my wrist I summoned Seraphs Judgement through the dimensional pocket portal and without hesitation roundhouse kicked the woman through the large glass windows of the store as time resumed.

There was a loud crash and the woman flew out the window and onto the streets.

"Everyone stay inside!" I ordered before leaping through the broken glass, the woman in leather now several feet below me. With a mere thought of tremendous power I had conjured an angelic seal below me. As I passed through felt myself be transported into Purgatorio, the spiritual wastelands that no creature can survive in.

Landing gracefully I looked to see the woman dusting herself off, two twin silver handguns now resided in her palms.

"Not bad. If you were able to activate Light Speed and teleport into Purgatorio then I'd say your almost back to your old self... _Sage._ "

The mysterious woman said the last part in a snarl, the wind blowing around her long flowing braids.

"You seem to know what I am, but that still doesn't explain who you are and what do you want with me."

The mysterious woman chuckled as she began to saunter forward. "Then maybe this should jog your memory a bit!" With those words she raised her hand skywards and instantly the Hideous dived towards me posed to attack.

Without a thought I aimed my guns and fired, the weak and low level Hideous' falling from the sky like stones I quickly disposed of them, but not before the mysterious woman quickly jumped high in the air, at a _inhumanly_ possible height and kicked the air.

At first I was confused at what she was doing, but the familiar boom of a Wicked Weave reached my ears as I was Wicked Kicked backwards.

I managed to turn my free flying into a graceful triple backflip landing but the shock was still clear running though my body and on my face.

 _An Umbra Witch!? Impossible! They're supposed to be dead. Killed in either the war or the Witch Hunts. How can this be!?_

The mysterious woman must've noticed my expression and smiled.

"If that look on your face is any more proof you've discovered what I am and what I can do. And with your death...the war will finally be over."

My grip on my guns tightened. I can't die here, not now. I still need to remember. Who I was? And just what was I fighting for. And now that this Umbra Witch now stands before me I _refuse_ to die here. I was given a second chance and I'm taking it by the reins.

Channeling the magic into my hand I traced a circle in the air with my fingers, the crest of the Lumen Sages had formed with angelic script floating in a circle around it. Quickly passing through the circle I felt my body rejuvenate and a bright light enveloped my body as my clothes began to shift.

Passing through the magic circle I did away with my civilian clothing and was now in my divine robes, the clothing that the Lumen Sage's wore five hundred years in the past. The robes were pretty basic in design but I had to give my ancestors props for their tastes. The ivory colored robes and gold accents with golden heeled shoots and white gloves.

Though the robes did fit my body rather snug and really conformed to it I didn't mind. At least I knew these were real clothes as opposed to Umbra Witches who wore their hair as clothes that fly off when they Wicked Weave or summon their Infernal partners.

The Witch's eyes widened in surprise at seeing my outfit, giving me the chance to charge forward firing a flurry of bullets her way.

She retaliated by doing the same, firing bullet after bullet we closed the distance between us and soon it became close quarters combat. Kick after kick, punch after punch in a endless stream of combos.

Eventually the magic swirling in my body had reached it's maximum output, I could tell from the faint shimmering gold aura radiating off of my body.

Using this as my chance I quickly gun-butted the Witch across the face and activated my Lumen Grace, the light counterpart to a Witch's Umbran Climax. Taking this chance I began throwing punch after punch, portals to Paradiso blazing to life as the large porcelain fists of Beloved flew outwards and thrashed the Umbra Witch, the girl being tossed around like a rag doll.

As I felt the magic of Lumen Grace slowly start to wear off I charged up my magic for one final attack, the Beloved's fist was now charged with angelic energy before Holy Uppercutting the Umbra and launching her into the sky.

Seeing this as my chance to finish her off I quickly drew a small swan feather out of thin air and threw it up into the sky as I called down an angel from the heavens in Enochian, the language of Laguna and Infernal's.

 **"ZIRACAH!"**

The swan feather glowed with immense light as it transformed into a vortex of swirling energy. And coming forth from the portal was a Cardinal Virtue that has assisted me in many devil hunting jobs, Fortitudo. The Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude, and the Bringer of Flames.

The massive angel with two dragon like heads, one decorated with red armor and the other blue with an upside down human face in the middle roared in fury as it prepared to devour the Witch in it's jaws.

But the Umbra apparently had power left in her as she quickly summoned the fist of the demoness Madama Khepri and sucker punched Fortitudo's middle human head before opening a portal bearing the symbol of the Eyes of the World.

As the Umbra Witch was about to pass through the portal she turned to me and her mouth began to move. And then I heard her voice as clear as day as if she was standing right behind me and whispering in my ear.

"If you wish to finish this fight, and know more about your past, meet me at Vigrid. The sacred town from whence this ancient blood feud began."

And with that she disappeared through the portal and she was no more. Leaving me to ponder her words carefully as I assessed my situation and my choices.

 _I guess I'm going to Vigrid now. But that Witch. How could she have survived the Witch Hunts? And just_ how _did she know I was a Sage?_

 _There's only one way to find out._

 **A/N: Please don't forget to review and comment.**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: I would like for everyone to please note that this takes place both before AND during the first Bayonetta game. With that in mind please enjoy the second chapter of Inferno Slayer.**

It took me a couple of hours before I finally reached Vigrid from southern France. After the aftermath of fighting that Witch and her nearly destroying my favorite clothing store she had left me with questions, and I wanted my answers.

Riding the trains in Purgatorio was a perk I greatly admired as it aloud me to basically go anywhere I please for free, and it goes unnoticed by human eyes. The only beings able to see through the different realms are beings such as cats, and maybe a few dogs but heavily leaning on cats. Hence why it always looks like they're staring at something.

"We are approaching Vigrid station. This is our final stop. Please have-", I tuned out the lady's voice on the intercom as I got myself up from my seat and walked off onto the platform, the old faded brick and paint of the train station made it seem like a very old town, yet it still had this old vintage feel to it.

Looking at the residents of Vigrid I took note of their holy vestments, the clothing they wear were similar to the divine robes that we Sage's wore. Walking past a couple sitting on a bench I heard them utter something about Vigrid being 'Paradise of Europe.' I mean the old place did have it's charm, but calling this place a paradise was a bit of a stretch.

But still, I felt a strong connection to this place. Most places in the world are closer to Paradiso, Inferno, or Purgatorio, the realms in the Trinity of Realities. But I've never witnessed somewhere being close to Paradiso on such a scale, the faint feeling of angelic energy swirling in the air gave me a sense of calm and serenity.

Waking through the detectors leading past the station I took notice of the assault rifles in the hands of Vigrid Security personnel. For this place to be in the middle of nowhere they sure have some impressive weapons.

Making a right down the corridor I turned to see a strange looking wall made of strange out of place bricks with a red gem in the center.

 _What's this?_ I wondered getting closer.

Walking closer to the door the gen started to glow and a faint hum could be heard. _Interesting_ , I began to ponder. I had read somewhere that Vigrid had secret catacombs underneath the city but researchers had no idea how to access them. Probably because they were human and they didn't have magic.

Eyeing the wall for a brief moment I looked the strange brick wall up and down before deciding to test the theory I came up with.

Directing my magic into my hands I launched a volley of Virtuous Punches, portals to Paradiso swirling into existence and assaulting the wall. With each hit the wall's glow began to increase until it finally withdrew and receded, revealing a hidden passage.

 _I knew it_ , I cheered as I charged inside, the door returning to it's original state behind me.

The secret passage was a corridor with a cavern below, the place was kept alight by torches, although it alluded me as to how these torches could still be burning.

Leaping over the cavern in a single bound I looked to see two statues on either side of the door. On the left was that of a crouching demon, the statue withered away by time, most of it corroding away. And on the right was an angel, it's large wings spread, the statue of the angel was in perfect condition as if almost brand new.

The demons were always on the left as to represent the Umbra Witches and their treasured Left Eye while the right symbolized the Lumen Sages and our Right Eye of Light.

The door seemed to be held shut by some kind and of oversized lock with a barrier placed around it. "Hmm", I thought to myself as I opened my palm and with my magic summoned a crystal sword, the blade a sapphire blue that shimmered in the light. The sword radiated a powerful aura of magic, and without a moment of hesitation I stabbed the lock dead in the center, a bright blue light escaping where the sword had pierced it.

I felt the protective barrier vanish and the lock disintegrated as the doors slowly opened. Stepping across the threshold I was lead into a much wider place, vegetation growing around and through the ancient stone floors, and along the walls as well.

But what caught my eye where what was at the opposite end of the room.

Two statues. Or rather a statue of a Lumen Sage standing guard, tall and triumphant, and on the left what should be the statue of an Umbra Witch, decimated and destroyed as if someone with a deep hatred for the Umbra had done it. And beyond that was running water flowing beyond, blocking what appeared to be another passage across the way.

I tried to touch the remains of the Umbra Witch statue but recoiled as I felt a burning pain lance through my arms. "Ow what the hell!" I gritted my teeth from the pain until I heard the sound of growling behind me. Turning around I look to see a swarm of Hideous flapping their leathery bat wings towards me with their scythe's in their hands ready to fight.

My grip on my crystal sword tightened as a Hideous swung it's scythe at me, ready to slice my head clean off my shoulders. I parried the attack with little effort, my swordplay temporarily stunning the demon giving me time to Righteous Kick it in the face across the room, killing it in an instant.

Next a Hideous tried to get me from behind, but I dodged at the last second to trigger Light Speed. Time froze around me as color drained away and all of the Hideous surrounding me were nothing but fair game.

Swinging my crystal sword I fired several energy slashes from my blade that ripped their bodies to shreds as Light Speed deactivated itself. The death of the demons must've triggered something as the Umbra Witch statue reconstructed itself and glowing letters of Enochian flickered and blazed to life in the air.

 _"Lumen Sage and Umbra Witch when their powers meet in a test of strength, the lightning released shall be your test. If you wish to walk upon water, prove your mettle by dodging the lightning in a single hair's breath."_

Snapping my fingers the hands of Beloved lifted the statues of the Lumen and Umbra. Looking above me I saw as lightning was about to strike and I dodged at the last possible second. Light Speed was triggered and the water was completely frozen in time.

Running across the water was child's play as I made it across before time resumed, and I was met with another strange wall with a gem, only this one was much slimmer.

I fired a few quick Charge Shots from the small handheld version of Seraphs Judgement and the wall broke apart, only to reform as a floating platform at the center of the room. Hoping onto the platform I was taken into the room above, light coming in from the windows.

The lift appears to be powered by magic so I highly doubt the humans know about the ruins that lie beneath their feet. Walking down the long corridor I felt something supernatural in the next room. It felt angelic but I had my guns ready to be sure. Turns out it was a portal to Paradiso.

 _Who or what would leave a portal to Heaven open for demons or humans to encroach upon._

And yet...I felt a draw to the portal. As if it would lead me to somewhere I knew. Cautiously I entered the portal and my vision was blinded by light.

When my vision returned I blinked as I took in the majesty of Paradiso.

Golden light reined from above, white downy feathers of angels free fell from the air and swirled on mystic air. I looked down on my feet to find that I was standing on a floating platform, in fact I spotted multiple floating platforms swirling around the place.

 _So this is Paradiso? I expected pearly gates and a heavenly choir._

"Who dares to encroach upon our world of light?" A deep and genderless voice boomed. I spun around to see a large Seraphim angel rise from the depths. It's body was dressed in golden armor, it's body was that of a snake, with large teeth and an upside down human face on it's chest. The Angel also possessed a multitude of clawed hands.

I recognized the angel as a high ranking Seraphim angel. The Glamor Seraph.

If seen and summoned large angels before, but to be so close and see just how small in comparison I was gave me newfound fear and admiration.

"My name is Serah Luxerion. I am for a lack of a better word the last surviving member of the Lumen Sage Clan. Forgive me for my trespass."

"I see, so you are the one the prophecy had foretold us of?"

This piqued my interest. "Foretold? Prophecy!?"

"I see your confusion my child, come with me, the Prophetess shall explain it all. Come along." At first I thought Glamor meant for me to fly alongside it but it actually gestured for me to get on. Leaping onto the back of the great serpent we flew through the serene airs of Paradiso and I got even more of a glimpse of where I'll live when I died.

There were a whole bunch of gardens and mist but all in all it seemed as if it was completely relaxed and peaceful. Glamor continued to fly across the plains of Paradiso until we reached a large floating island with a large temple sitting atop it.

"Go forward into the temple. There you shall meet the Prophetess and you shall know your fate. Good luck on your quest Sage." I leaped down onto the stone steps and I bid the Glamor Seraph farewell. Turning to face the temple I noticed that it was a Lumen Temple. Large statues of Sage's and angels decorated tall stone spires, the crest of the sun was embossed on a lot of the Temple's outer walls.

Walking up the steps I walked into the Temple's inner shrine and I saw what had to be the most serene and mystical thing I had ever seen.

An altar stood tall and erected at the back with a stone statue of the goddess Jubileus and in the center of the room was a spring with crystal clear water and floating water lilies. And at the center of the spring defying the laws of physics was a young woman meditating on water.

Her skin was a deadly pale, and she had long wavy pink hair that reached deep into the water. She wore a flowing white gown with jewelry adorning her neck and gold bracelets. Around her head was a golden circlet with the sun, moon, and stars interwoven in the Crown. Her hands were clasped together in prayer and her eyes were shut.

I took a step forward and opened my mouth to speak, but she beat me to it.

"You've come in search of answers do you not?" Her eyes opened and I saw her electric blue eyes, like sapphires. I nodded in agreement. "My name is-"

"Serah Luxerion. One of the last Lumen Sages. My name is Claire. I am the Prophetess of Paradiso. I see both past, present, and future."

I stiffened at the fact she knew all of this such as my name and what I was, but the wording of her sentence was what really caught me off guard.

"What do you mean _one_ of the last Lumen Sages!? Is there another Sage in the world of the living, am I truly not alone?"

Claire held up her hand to silence me as she rose to her full height, her bare feet peeking from beneath her white gown. She sauntered forward and literally _glided_ across the water.

Her hand gently cupped my face how one would greet a younger family member. With familiarity and tender care. "You have many questions, and I will answer them to the best of my abilities. But first before you know the future, you must first rediscover the future."

A look of confusion struck across my face as I tried to understand and decipher Claire's cryptic words. Both hands rose to cup my cheeks as she stared me dead in the eyes, her sapphire eyes now electric and brimming with power and fury, like a tempest that cannot be contained.

"Awaken Serah! Let your eyes be unclouded by darkness and see with the eyes not of this world...not the Right Eye Light nor the Eye of Darkness, but with power unyielding and unbound by chronology. The Remembrance's of Time."

And that's when her eyes began to glow and I felt her consciousness _merge_ with my own. It didn't hurt but it felt weird, I couldn't help but gasp. One moment I was Serah, and then I was Claire before the line between began to blur.

And then I felt something unlock in my mind as if someone had used a key and released the lock on my brain. And that's when I saw it. I had regained a small fragment of my memory in the form of a flashback. It was a distant memory prior to my 500 year sleep.

It was a flashback of my training as a Sage.

 **A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. A little note is that this book will be updated daily and all my other works will either be put on hold or slowed down, at least until this book reaches chapter 20.**

 **Please don't forget to share, and review.**


	4. Chapter 3

I watched with eyes of deep admiration as I stood and watched the other Sage's training. The sound of swords and the booms of Angelic Summons filled the hall.

I took a small reprieve as I had just finished a sparing match with an senior Sage. To make a long story short I got my ass whooped, but I at least put up a good fight and lasted longer than most trainees. Sunlight was filtered through the large dome window resting at the top of the training hall.

My time for sunbathing was over as I had to dodge a incoming Lumen Sage flying backwards from the full brunt of a Virtuous Punch. The Sage collided with the iron bars of the gates.

That must've hurt.

"Attention everyone", a low familiar voice echoed. I turned my attention to the entrance of the Training Grounds to see the Lumen Elder, Father Rosario with his platinum blonde hair slicked back and his bishop cap on that went well with his cream and gold colored robes. Supporting his movement was a walking stick with the crest of the sun at the top of the staff.

"If you all would please proceed to the outer Training Grounds for further training. The time has come for the next level of your training, angel summoning."

A ripple of cheers surged through the gathered Lumen's as they paraded out of the Training Hall, with me a few steps behind them. "Ah Lady Serah, surprised to see you here", Father Rosario spoke.

I chuckled at his words.

"Thought I'd get some practice in, the younger trainees are getting better. But are you sure they're ready for angel summoning? Some of them are as green as grass and don't understand how to control their Spirit Energy. One wrong move in the summoning and the angel will-"

"I understand your concern Serah, but the life of a Sage or Witch is not without sacrifice and risks. Just as we must pray and care for our angels, so must the Witches serve their demons. Now come along it's time you join your classmates."

Once me and Father Rosario left the Training Hall to the outer Training Grounds the other Sage's were already lined up awaiting instructions.

I took my place at the back and joined the other Sage's ranks as Father Rosario went to the front to begin teaching the class.

"Now I'm sure all of you know that to help maintain the balance, and to protect the Right Eye of Light we must contract ourselves with the angels of Paradiso, the benevolent beasts of Heaven that represent the Divine Will."

"Now let it be known that summoning angels is not without hard work. You must train and steel your mind you must have complete focus of the angels you bring forth, or else the angels just might turn and devour you."

I took notice of some Sage's stiffening at the Elder's words whilst the much older Sage's already knew this. They-we have been preparing and training for this for years. Some since birth and some as they were indoctrinated into the Clan. Either way, this is the most important aspect of a Sage. The ability to commune and conjure the angels.

"Lady Serah", the Lumen Elder called out, grasping my attention.

"Will you please come forward to help me demonstrate?" I nodded as I trudged forward without a word as I stood beside the Lumen Elder.

"Serah is a powerful Lumen Sage that has been Training with us for several years, and in a few years time she will take her Holy Vows and become a full fledged Lumen Sage."

I felt light blush creep across my face as I heard of my accomplishments and my life being told before others.

"Lady Serah, will you kindly demonstrate the skilled focus and ability required to bring forth an Auditio into our plane of existence?"

"Of course Father Rosario" I spoke as I drew a shimmering swan feather, the form my Spirit Energy takes that I offer to the angels that I summon.

Just as the demons of Inferno demands the blood of angels and the Umbra Witches Spirit Energy is sacrificed, so must we Lumen Sage's offer up our Spiritual Power to the angels as the angels prey for the death and blood of the demons.

Releasing the swan feather in the air I called on one of my personal favorite angels.

 **"ZIRACAH!"**

Throwing the swan feather into the air a vortex of swirling golden light appeared in the sky as the large draconic angel Fortitudo floated in the sky.

The large angel let out a fierce roar as my class men gave me claps of approval. I couldn't help but grin as Fortitudo slowly receded back into Paradiso.

"That was the Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude, and the Bringer of Flames. Fortitudo. Now for some of the lower class men summoning such high ranking angels might be a little to advanced so for now stick to the lower ranking Sphere's. As for my advanced portion of the class I would like for you all to first commune with your angels before you bring them forth, the last thing we need is a brother or sister Sage joining Paradiso's ranks too soon."

And with those final words the Sage trainees broke off and began to work on their summoning. I on the other hand looked down at my Lumen Watch, golden in color with Pure Platinum gem jewels embedded. Lumen Watches were what Sage's used to keep them youthful against the passage of time and it's the source of our life force as it was in other words our souls. Hence why we can take so many hits that would kill normal humans and still live, albeit with some exceptions.

I stared at the Watch's surface as it ticked away, time seemed to move slower every time you stare at it.

"...we're not supposed to summon Auditio's yet Sam. Your gonna get us in trouble!"

I was snapped out of my thoughts as I turned to see two Lumen Sage trainees, one of them had a smug grin on their face whilst the other looked frightened.

"Oh relax Jim we'll be fine. I studied the incantation in and out, besides think. If we do this summon correctly and summon a Cardinal Virtue then the Lumen Elder will see how skilled we are and put us in a advanced class so we'll be that much closer to taking our Holy Vows and become Sage's. Now help me with this."

 _Well that sounds utterly stupid. Don't they know that if they don't handle the Spirit Energy carefully then the portal could backfire and end up summoning a demon instead?_

 _I better stop this before they make a terrible mistake._

But I arrived to late.

The last thing I remember was them uttering the incantation wrong, a powerful glow, and then screaming.

The force of the spell gone wrong had blown me backwards, my body colliding hard with the stone wall. Pain flared through my body and most of my limbs felt weak and limp, but somehow I managed to raise my head to see what monstrosity had those two idiot Sage's conjured.

My eyes widened as a fierce roar pierced the air as the Cardinal Virtue fully formed in our world. It was not hard to recognize which of the Auditio had been summoned. With the angel's lizard like body, and it's armor making it look like a deep aquatic creature.

It was Sapientia. The Cardinal Virtue of Prudence, the Controller of the Seas.

I looked around to see most of the other Lumen Sage's were still weakened and fearful from the spell's blast. I spared a quick glance to see that Father Rosario was propped up against a large boulder, blood running down the side of his face.

 _Shit! Looks like I have to be the one to fix this mess._

Sapientia looked down at the two Sage's that has summoned him and grasped both of them within it's claws.

They pleaded with Sapientia to release them but the angel was too far gone in rage to understand them. As it's large mechanical jaw opened to devour the two Trainees I quickly conjured Seraphs Judgement into my hands and fired a couple of Charge Shots at the massive angel.

The magical bullets exploded in Sapientia's face, the Cardinal Virtue hissing with pain as it dropped the Lumen Sage's.

"This is your chance, leave!" I roared at them. I didn't have to tell them twice as they soon disappeared from the scene. I have to finish this angel off quickly and I need to be careful. Any wrong move would have us falling off the cliff and down into the misty forest thousands of feet below.

"Tell me Sage, so you think you can beat me!? You are no more than an insignificant worm!"

I ignored his words and aimed my guns at him.

"Let's see if your just talk", I taunted causing the Virtue to fire a stream of heat-seeking missiles. I dodged the flurry of rockets at the last second and used my power to deflect them all back at Sapientia.

The Auditio roared in fury as it lunged for me almost at the speed of light. My eyes widened as I backflipped into the air, narrowly missing the large gaping jaws of the lizard like angel.

Hovering in the air I activated my Lumen Grace, a familiar golden aura coating my body.

I summoned a sword made out of pure light and began to hack and slash at Sapientia's face.

Large open wounds began to form as angelic blood began to decorate the floors. The Cardinal Virtue roared in agony before blasting me backwards with a beam of light. It didn't hurt per say, but I did feel the sting.

Sapientia used this time to swipe at me with his dangerously long claws. But thankfully I was able to grab his wrist using the hands of Temperantia, the Cardinal Virtue of Temperance, the Manipulator of Wind.

Summoning the other hand of Temperantia I sucker punched Sapientia in the face, the sound of his jaw dislocating with a loud crack echoed across the Sunrise Valley.

Sapientia groaned in pain as he landed in a pool of his own blood, temporarily disabled. Seizing the opportunity I snapped my fingers and conjured magic binding ribbons, gold in color they wrapped around Sapientia and tied up his body, the ribbons held and bound by powerful light magic.

Taking out Seraphs Judgement the musket rifle began to glow with a divine and brilliant light before it grew to the size of a large cannon.

I smiled as I knew victory was within my grasp.

Aiming the large oversized cannon I prepared to fire.

"Tirò Finale!"

Pulling the trigger the loud boom of the cannon could be heard as a powerful blast of light shot or of the barrel and blasted Sapientia square in the face.

The large cannon form of Seraphs Judgement shrank down to it's original size as I gazed at the wreckage that Sapientia had wrought.

I then looked to see that everyone was okay, the other Sage Trainees looking at me with either fear, respect, admiration, or all three.

Either way I had just defeated a Cardinal Virtue, the Controller of the Seas no less.

I let out an exhausted sigh as I fell to the floor like a crumbled heap, the drain of my casting all that magic finally taking a toll on my body.

 **A/N: Please don't forget to share, Review, and comment.**


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